Convertible cap for attachment-plugs.



G. P. KNAPP.

CONVERTIBLE CAP FOR ATTACHMENT PLUGS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC, 5, I917.

Patented Aug. 13, 1918.

ATTORNEY 1 narrates.

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I Application flied December 5, 1917-. Serial no. 205,631.

To all whom it may concern;

Be itknown that I, Gnome P. KNAIPP, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bridgeport, county of Fairfield, State of Connecticut, have invented an Improvement in Convertible Caps for Attachment-Plugs,

of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object to provide a cap for attachment plugs (and receptacles as well) which shall be provided with floating contact blades adapted to be moved iromone position to another, without de- 1parallel bla e receiving slots or polarizing I lade receiving slots, that is si tachment from the body, so as to adapt the cap for use in connection with attachment plugs havin alined blade receiving slots,-or

ots adapted to receive the contact blades in polarizing position only, and likewise to make the cap readily convertible from the alined, or parallel,

or polarizing type to. either of the others.

I am thus enabled to provide a single convertible cap adapted toserve equally well as an alined blade, .or a parallel blade, or a polarizing blade cap.

With these objects in view, I have. devised the novel attachment plug cap which I will now describe, the operative parts consisting of three members only, each duplicated, and all simple and inexpensive to produce,

In the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, I

Figure 1 is a plan view, of my novel convertible plug cap, I

Fig. 2 an inverted plan view, the contact blades being in the polarizing position,

Fig. 2 a detail inverted plan view of the lower contact plate and contact blade, as seen in Fig. 2, i

Fig. 3 a section on the line 33 in Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrows,

Fig. 4 a section on the line 4-4 in Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrows,

Fig. 5 a perspective .view of one of the contact blades detached,

Fig. 6 a perspective view of one of the my novel convertible plug showing, respec specification or Letters Iatcnt.

tiyely the contact blades 1a the parallel, the alined and the polarizi positions.

20 denotes the body w ich is made of in I sulating material, 21 the movable contact blades, each provided with an an le arm 24,

22 the backing springs, and 23 t e contact plates. The contact'blades are not attached to any other member, but each rests upon a bowed backmg spring, which lies in a recess 25 n the body. Each contact plate carries a blnding screw 26 and is attached to the body by screws 27 which engage threaded plugs 28 molded into the body. The contact plates bridge "recesses 25 which receive both the backing springs and the angle arms of the contact blades, the blades themselves passing through apertures 29, of special configuration in the contact plates. Each of the apertures is provided with a straight wall 30, having on its underside a lug 31,

,With a curved wall 32, with a backing wall 33, with a rounded bearing projection 34, and with a notch 35, opposite the curved wall. 36 denotes the usual hole in the body through which the electrical conductors, not shown, are passed.

In assem ling, the backing springs are placed in recesses 25, the contact blades passed through the apertures in the contact plates, and then the contact plates and contact blades are placed in position, and the plates are secured in place by screws 27 In use, the backing springs bear against blade will lie against backing wall 33 This position of a blade with relation to the corresponding aperture, will, it is thought, he clearly understood from'Fig. 2, in connection'with Fig. 6. In swinging a contact blade from the alined to the parallel position, as at the right in Fig. 3, one face of the blade will pivot on projection 34 which serves as a fulcrum, one edge of the blade passing over curved wall 32 and the other edge dropping into notch 35, this movement of the blade continuing until one face of the blade bears against straight wall 30 of the aperture, which stops further movement of the blade. In swinging a blade from the parallel position, as at the right in Fig. 3,

- to the allned position, as at the left in Fig.

3, the movement is simply the reverse of the one just described One edge of the blade will pass ove'r curved wall 32 until the face of the blade comes into contact with projection 34, when the blade will Pivot on the projection as before, the edge of the blade opposite the curved wall swinging out of the notch.

This movement will continue until the face of the blade bears against backing wall 33 and one edge of the angle arm bears against lug 31, as before, which stops further movement of theblade,

In the polarizing arrangement, of the contact blades, one blade is placed in what I have termed the alined position and the other in what I have termed the parallel position. To convert the cap from the alined, or the parallel, or the polarizing position of the contact blades to either of the other positions, it is simply necessary to swing one .or both blades to the required position. When the electrical conductors have been attached to the binding screws,

- they need never be detached -in making any number of changes from one type of plug to another.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A convertible cap for attachment plugs, comprising a body, a movable contact blade having an angle arm, and a contact plate covering the angle arm and having an aperture through which the blade is passed, said aperture having a configuration adapted to permit the blade to be swung from parallel to alined position, or vice versa.

2. A convertible cap for attachment plugs, comprising a body, movable contact blades having angle arms, and contact plates covering the angle arms and having apertures through which the blades are passed, each aperture having a configuratlon adapted to permit the corresponding blade to be swung from parallel to alined position, or vice versa, and means for stopping the movement of the blade when swung to either position.

3. A convertible cap for attachment plu comprising a body, movable contact bla es havmg angle arms, and contact plates covering the angle arms and having apertures through which the blades are amed, each aperture having a straight wa l, a curved wall, a backing wall, a rounded projection and a notch, the rounded projection serving as a fulcrum 'for the blade in swinging from parallel to alined position, or vice versa, and the straight wall servin as a stop for the blade in the parallel position.

4. convertible cap for attachment lugs, comprising a body, movable contact blades having angle arms, and contact plates coveringthe angle arms and having apertures through which the blades are passed, each aperture havin 'a straight wall with a lug on its under si e, a curved wall, a backing 'wall, a rounded projection and a notch, the

s ga ed by the blade, and the lug by the angle arm, in the alined position.

5. A convertible cap for attachment plugs, comprising a body, movable contact blades having angle arms, backing springs bearing upon theangle arms, and contact plates covering the angle arms, and having apertures through which the blades are passed, each aperture having a configuration adapted to permit swinging movement of the corresponding blade.

6. A convertible cap for attachment plugs, comprising a body having recesses, movable contact blades having angle arms, backing springs bearing upon the angle arms, said springs and arms being seated in said recesses,'and contact plates covering the angle arms and springs and having apertures through which the blades are passed, said apertures permitting swinging movement of the contact blades.

7. An attachment plug cap having movable contact blades provided with angle arms, springs bearing on the an le arms, and stopsfor the blades in either t e alined or'parallel position.

. In testimony whereof I afiix my si ature.

' GEORGE P. K APP. 

